The Smart Medical Practice

Patient payments, long a sore spot for providers, are becoming increasingly important as more patients move to high-deductible plans. Here are six ways to ease the pain. 1. Make it easy for patients to provide information. For collections and medical billing, the more information you have on a patient, the better. So think carefully about 

Since the goal of most physicians is more time with patients, many are turning to mid-level providers like physician assistants (PAs) to help shift the balance. Although the PA role was created by physicians and the certification has been around for almost 50 years, some myths about PAs persist. For those considering expanding the role

Owning a medical practice can be a jarring experience, even for those with nerves of steel. In the face of increasing regulations and stagnant reimbursements, many small practices seem to teeter on the brink of closure. Rising to meet those challenges, though, is the key to ensuring the success and growth of a private practice.

Medical marijuana is allowing chronically ill patients to relieve painful, often debilitating symptoms by legally “toking it up” instead of popping pills that they claim were not doing anything to ease their severe pain. The widespread acceptance of marijuana as a useful medication is also creating a unique medical practice niche that some critics are

CMS is expected to implement a greater number of audits is mounting. Doctors and health administrators should assume that the chance of being audited is going to be higher than normal. Consequently, they should begin preparing for a potential audit as soon as possible. To continue receiving meaningful use funds from the CMS, providers must

Chances are tragically high that you’ll eventually be sued for malpractice. This holds true even if your practice has done nothing wrong, has an experienced staff, does things by the book and delivers the expected standard of care. One-third of all physicians have already been there, while nearly one-fifth more have been threatened with a

It may be long overdue when the time comes to change your medical billing software. A practice or billing service company that wants to change its medical billing software certainly faces some serious barriers; from retraining staff on the new system, retiring open accounts on the old, and doing it all while trying to maintain

Patients today are often underserved, but it’s hard to place too much blame on physicians. Most primary care doctors are completely overworked and exhausted, and they can’t seem to get much relief from that state. The Affordable Care Act, aging baby boomers, and retiring physicians are creating a perfect storm that’s completely overwhelming the health

One of the more popular trends in health care today is increasing the availability of health care providers to patients. One way to do this is to add non-traditional hours. Ways of increasing availability via extended hours Adding extra hours for patients doesn’t have to mean increasing your payroll or overhead costs. Rather, it involves

No matter if a rural doctor is wearing boots, plaid or a cowboy hat, his or her professional attitudes and beliefs are similar to those found in big-city physicians with windows overlooking Times Square.  At least that’s the conclusion gleaned from a survey published in the Journal of Rural Health. What the Survey Did The